Bombardier Wins $1.7 Billion Q400 Order From India”s SpiceJet

Bombardier Inc. (TSX:BBD.B) won an order from SpiceJet Ltd. for as many as 50 turboprop planes worth $1.7 billion as the Indian budget carrier expands its fleet to meet demand for regional air travel.

The deal is for 25 Q400 planes, with purchase rights for 25 more, Bombardier said in a statement Tuesday.

The deal comes a day after SpiceJet signed an agreement to buy 20 new Boeing 737 Max 10s — the biggest variant of the aircraft — and to convert existing commitments for 20 smaller Max 8s to meet rising demand. Indian carriers are ordering hundreds of planes, including smaller turboprop models, as an emerging middle class flies for the first time and as Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledges to fund some money-losing routes if airlines fly more to remote airports to improve connectivity.

Indian market leader IndiGo, operated by InterGlobe Aviation Ltd., has ordered as many as 430 Airbus SE A320neos jets, on top of a deal to buy 100 aircraft, and placed an outline order for 50 turboprop planes.